This is where I am supposed to write a post about Halloween candy and wine pairings.

It is National Chocolate Day after all.

And it is the time for all of those Halloween parties.

And yep, it is hard not to tuck into that big bowl of candy while waiting for trick or treaters to stop by.

But this is where I just say NO.

That’s right, folks wanted to send me wine to pair with Halloween candy and that’s what I said: NO. No, I won’t. I won’t do it I tell you! I even emailed Sue and said hey they want to send us wine to pair with Halloween candy and I said no. Send us the wine if you want but I’m not doing a Halloween wine and candy post.

NO NO NO.

Instead,  Sue and I played with Prosecco, Naked Wine’s Cougar, and some other sweeter white wines at Helen’s birthday party to develop some seasonal cocktails that would pair just fine with Halloween candy or crazy sweet potluck party food at Halloween, Thanksgiving or over the winter holiday party season. In June, we experimented with Lambrusco and we were really pleased with these results.

So go there: I dare you!

And have a happy Halloween!

Gancia Prosecco – Vino Spumante Dry – 11.5% alcohol – under $19

This prosecco has been made in Italy since 1860. This is a typical tasting prosecco. It has the flavor profiles of prosecco. It does not have yeasty qualities of champagne. It is bursting with fruit.

Helen commented that it was “Sweet yet dry – very nice.”

After sampling this prosecco we played around with prosecco cocktails. First we went with Helen’s three G”s Gran Marnagne St. Germaine and San Pelegrino with Gancia Prosecco with a lime garnish. This was very nice when it was well chilled.

The other cocktail was pumpkin puree mixed with honey, cloves, ginger and nutmeg. We mixed this Belini style. It was a delicious cocktail. Flavors of fall to get any fall meal started.

This wine on its own was a bit too sweet for my palate, but it worked well with our cocktails. And hey, maybe it’s sweet enough for Halloween candy! It would definitely work with a dark chocolate.

Sommariva – Conegliano Valdobbiadene – Prosecco – Imported by Kermit Lynch – 11.5 – by the case – $12

Someone brought this beauty to the party. We were not going to write about this wine because we had so much else going on and we did not have to write about another wine, however we liked this wine so much when we tasted it, it was worthy of mention. It is crisp and yeasty and fresh. It is just what you want in a sparkling wine. This is a beautiful brunch champagne.

As I was sipping this wonderful prosecco, I had a disco dance party going on in front of me. Seriously! Our friends know how to have fun! This reminded us of a studio 54 type of party wine. Fancy and fun. Great value at $12 for cocktails or on its own. Probably not what you want with Halloween candy unless you sweeten it up cocktail style.

 

Naked Wines – Cougar – 11.5% – $25 – 11.5% alcohol

This sweet moscato makes a nice sweet cocktail wine or as a mixer, and we tried it with Helen’s 3 G’s. Light and refreshing, it’s definitely a Cougar Cocktail.  This wine claims to be sweet and sexy and stands up to those claims.

Sue said that she cannot drink this wine on its own, however if you were going to make this into a cocktail or serve it with some Asian sweet and sour food it works. It might also do well at a pool party when it is hot outside and some refreshing coolness is needed.

Or check out these Lambrusco Cocktails. 

I’m definitely thinking this will be the trick to go with our treats tonight!